Joe Cole says Harvey Elliott ‘has to leave’ leaving Liverpool for a club that can guarantee him regular playing time.
Elliott enjoyed a short break on the back of Liverpool’s title-winning season before jetting off with Lee Carsley’s England squad for this summer’s European Under-21 Championship.
Considering he made just two starts in the Premier League last term, Elliott could have been forgiven for starting out a little rusty in England colours – but the midfielder was anything but in Slovakia.
The 22-year-old racked up five goals in six appearances to help the Young Lions defend their title from 2023 and was subsequently named Player of the Tournament for his excellent contribution.
But now that the dust has settled on England’s celebrations, the youngster faces a tough decision over his future at Anfield.
Get personalised updates on Liverpool every day
Wake up to find news on your club in your inbox every morning with Metro’s Football Newsletter.
Sign up to our newsletter and then select your team in the link we’ll send you so we can get football news tailored to you.
According to talkSPORT, the Reds would be prepared to let Elliott leave should they receive an offer in the region of £40million for the ex-Fulham man – and Newcastle have been credited with an interest, as well as Bundesliga outfit RB Leipzig.
Discussing Elliott’s options on The Dressing Room Podcast, ex-Liverpool, Chelsea and England winger Cole said: ‘He hasn’t played enough football.
‘He’s gone there [Liverpool], he’s 22 now. He’s got personality on the pitch.
‘Jurgen Klopp, when he left, said one of the regrets he had at Liverpool was he didn’t play this kid enough.
‘So he’s in this situation where he’s won Player of the Tournament, he’s scored five goals from midfield.
‘Some of the best players in the world have won that award and he looked at home, he looked like a leader, he scored some great goals.’
Cole was convinced that Elliott had ‘made up his mind’ over his Liverpool future after watching the youngster give an ’emotional’ interview while working for Channel 4 at the U21 Euros.
He added: ‘He’s got a decision to make. He hasn’t broken into the Liverpool team regularly, he’s 22… you can see it in him, he was getting emotional after one of the games when he did the interview for us on the TV.
‘What I took from that was that he was so happy that he’s playing and being the man. I thought I saw it in his mind that he’s made up his mind.
‘Even if Liverpool say, “We want you to stay”… unless he’s saying, “I need to start every single game”, which they can’t offer him, he has to leave.’
Cole’s former England team-mate, Micah Richards, meanwhile, can understand Elliott’s frustrations given the limited playing time he was given by Arne Slot last season.
However, Richards, discussing Elliott’s predicament on The Rest Is Football podcast, said there was ‘not a chance’ he would sell the midfielder if he was in Liverpool’s position.
‘If I’m Liverpool, I’m not selling him. Not one bit! I’m not selling him!’ the ex- Manchester City defender Richards said.
‘It’s similar to the Cole Palmer situation when he was at Manchester City. Okay, you’ve got Phil Foden, you’ve got Kevin De Bruyne at the time and other young players coming through…
‘But I just think, if he [Elliott] could get a good Premier League team on loan for the season [then he should stay at Liverpool].
‘Mohamed Salah signed a two-year deal and a year from now he might not be the same player that we’ve been used to over the years.
‘Elliott can play that position so well and I would just wait.
‘I wouldn’t get rid of him now, not a chance.’
Is £40m a fair price for Harvey Elliott?
-
Yes
-
No
For more stories like this, check our sport page.
Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on
Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.from: elfutbolero.us